2nd Finish of 2017 Darth Vader by Natali Needleworks

Hello and Merry Christmas to those who celebrate!  I am desperately trying to catch you up with my finishes from 2017.  My second finish of the year was way back in April.  I started Darth Vader by Natali Needleworks on Etsy on April 2nd and finished it on April 30th, 2017!

My husband is a big Star Wars fan and I had been planning to make this for him for awhile.  I had originally ordered some hand dyed fabric from the now closed Dye Stitch Love.  This is the piece I ordered called Full Moon 18 count Aida.

Now we all know that hand dying fabric is an art and not a science but I was really sad when I received this fabric.  The photo on the website was more of a smoky white and black which was exactly what I was looking for.  I took a photo with the Black 310 DMC that is about 95% of the design, and I didn't think it would contrast well with that fabric.

So I decided to try one of my favorite fabric and floss dyers Nguyen at Fiberlicious. And she really came through in a big way for this project!  Here is the fabric I purchased from her "Ashes to Ashes."

With more lighter white areas I felt that the Black floss would pop more.  Here are some of my progress photos of this design...

And here is it completely finished!!

This is the needleminder I used of Princess Leia from Gina's Unique Boutique.

When I returned to my hometown this summer I was able to take this piece to be professionally framed at Wheaton's Frame Shop, and here is the FFO Finished project!

I hope to update you with the rest of my 2017 finishes before the end of this year!  Until then...Happy Stitching!